A Comparative Study of Santosh Wagh and Inspector Gowda: Exploring Detective Archetypes

This paper presents a comparative analysis of Santosh Wagh from Private India by Ashwin Sanghi and James Patterson and Inspector Gowda from Anita Nair’s Chain of Custody. By examining their character traits, investigative methods, personal struggles, societal contexts, and how they align with classic detective archetypes, this study highlights the distinct ways these characters embody the evolution of Indian detective fiction. This analysis seeks to underscore how the blending of personal conflict and broader social critique contributes to the richness of the genre.